True Curse of the CatFist
by Ryo-chan wolfgirl
Summary: Sequel to Cat-Fist Revived After being possessed by the Ghost-Cat, Ryoga starts displaying some unusual behavior and side-affects. Then later both Ranma and Ryoga begin to realize the true horror of the Cat-fist training besides the fear of cats.
1. Chapter 1

Title: True Curse of the Cat-Fist  
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters, I'm just borrowing them. I'm co-writing this story with FantomoDrako.  
A.N. This story is the sequel to my previous story called, 'The Cat-Fist Training Revived'. (I recommend reading it before reading this fic) Ryoga has undergone the Cat-Fist training like Ranma because of Genma Saotome and now has the same fear of cats as Ranma does. This story starts off slow but it will get interesting later one. I promise. Please enjoy.

* * *

**Chapter One:**

A teenage boy grumbled as he followed a small, barely detectable trail that wound through the forest of trees that felt like they were hemming him in. Digging into his rather impressive store of knowledge concerning trails and paths, the boy deduced that the thin trail he was following belonged to some type of animal. What type, exactly, he didn't know; he just hoped it led him out of the woods.

It was already quite dark. There was barely enough light for the wanderer to see properly anymore, and he knew that he would have to camp in the woods tonight, waiting until tomorrow when the sun would allow him to safely finish his trek through the vast maze of trees.

"Well might as well make camp for the night." He said as he continued on, eyes on the lookout for a suitable site to set up camp.

It took a couple of minutes before he came across a sizeable clearing. Nodding to himself in satisfaction, he dug through the loam for some kindling to make a fire, stacking all the twigs and small branches together and rummaging through a side pocket of his large backpack for his box of waterproof matches.

Ever since his fateful trip to Jusenkyo, Ryoga Hibiki had been very careful about buying only waterproof matches. They were slightly more expensive but, in Ryoga's book, worth every extra yen. To him, they were _literal_ lifesavers, though he tried very hard to forget such incidents when the matches were sorely needed; usually to save his bacon from a hungry wild animal.

Ryoga shivered, hastily shoving images of snapping, lashing fangs and claws, accompanied by howls, yowls, snarls, growls and hissing, out of his head.

Before he could open the box and extract a match, he heard a cry of distress echo through the darkness. Leaping to his feet, Ryoga shoved the box of matches back in the side pocket and swung his pack onto his back. He could now hear what sounded like wild dogs. Growing anxious, Ryoga sprinted towards the eerie dirge of calls, hoping that whoever was in danger was not hurt and that he would not arrive too late to help. Bursting into a clearing larger than the one he had managed to find, he saw a pack of six wild dogs focused on a single target, their fangs bared and menacing growls ripping from their throats.

The dog nearest Ryoga suddenly lunged forward, mouth open and a manic glint of victory in its eyes. The bandanna-clad martial artist immediately sprung into action, whipping his red umbrella from the straps that held it on top of his backpack and thrusting it forward. The dog's open jaws clamped around the unnaturally heavy umbrella and Ryoga gave a slight heave, sending the dog flying back through the air a few feet. Dashing out to stand between the pack and their prey, Ryoga opened his umbrella with a deft flick of his wrist and threw it at the dogs. The umbrella spun through the air like a bladed Frisbee with a handle, missing the dogs by a short margin; close enough for them to get the point, before spinning back towards Ryoga's outstretched hand like a boomerang.

Easily catching his trademark weapon, Ryoga lowered it at the dogs like a knight pointing a sword. "So what are you waiting for?" Ryoga asked, staring down the dog whose attack he had deflected while gritting his teeth, making it look as though he was baring his own fangs. "Come and get me!"

The dog did not rise to the challenge. Taking a last look at the meal they were forfeiting and its strange, yet powerful guardian, the wild dogs fled, barking and yelping.

"See? You're perfectly safe," Ryoga assured whoever it was that he had just saved. He opened his eyes, as they had been closed while the dogs fled, and turned to face the stranger. Under the light of a full moon, the stranger's silhouette plunged Ryoga into shadow. Large furry limbs wrapped themselves around the Lost Boy; backpack and all, and something large and furry nuzzled against his face.

"Nyuu-you saved my life, nyaa-I'm so grateful! How can nyaa-I ever repay you?" The large, furry figure said, tears of gratefulness pooling in its eyes.

Ryoga's entire body froze before it started quivering. "C-c-c-c-cat!" He gasped out fearfully, trying to push down the overwhelming tide of fear that threatened to flood his system and drown his mind.

Indeed it was.

A large white cat with big yellow eyes stepped back from the statuesque human. It was the Chinese Ghost-Cat that had gone after Shampoo and fought Ranma Saotome for her hand in marriage. The cat took one look at Ryoga, matching his strange behavior to that which Ranma had exhibited, and retreated into his giant bell, turning his whole body into a strange mist to transfer it.

Ryoga's mind registered the disappearance of the ghostly cat's tangible presence and the quivers that wracked his body ceased. Ryoga blinked and called out a hesitant, "H… hello?"

"Nyaa-I'm here," The bell replied.

Ryoga stared at it incredulously. _'First it was a giant ghostly cat and now I'm hearing giant bells speak!'_

"Nyaa-I know there's a small building a little further away. Follow me nyaa-and we can talk there where it's safe from those dogs!" The bell said before lifting itself off the ground and floating away slowly enough for Ryoga to keep pace with it.

Walking swiftly, Ryoga followed the floating bell in a daze, not quite able to wrap his mind around the last couple of minutes yet. The bell and the Lost-boy continued traveling along a path that was more distinct and well-worn than the animal trail Ryoga had been following earlier. Sooner than Ryoga expected, the odd pair found themselves in front of an empty wooden cabin.

"Uhh would nyuu-you myaa-ind getting the door?" The bell asked as it waited politely to one side. Ryoga rolled his eyes and opened the door, leading the way inside.

Ryoga shuffled around in the dim moonlight that filtered through the dirty windows, his hands landing upon some kind of lantern. Once he had the lantern alight, he set it upon a table that was pushed broadside against one of the walls and closed the door once the bell was inside before settling himself cross-legged on the floor. He fidgeted anxiously, feeling tense at having a very large cat - even if he couldn't see it - so close.

"Nyuu-you're afraid of cats, aren't nyuu-you?" The bell asked.

The strange meowing inflection in the voice did nothing to help soothe the Lost Boy's agitated nerves. "Yes, I have a problem with… cats." Ryoga admitted, nodding his head as he tried to quell the urge to fidget. He crossed his arms so he wouldn't be tempted to twiddle his thumbs or something.

"Nyaa-I'll stay inside my bell then," The cat promised, "but nyaa-I have to talk to nyuu-you."

Ryoga blinked a couple of times and said, "Okay…"

A short while later, Ryoga began to relax a tiny bit as he got used to the cat's voice while it told its story, although his mind kept reminding him that a 'ghost cat' was talking to him but he tried to ignore that little fact. A bird of some kind was filling the night air with its song, ignored by both beings in the cabin.

"I see… so you've been out looking for a bride all this time?" Ryoga asked, interested despite himself.

"Nyuu-you're the only person who's ever been nyaa-ice to me," The cat said sadly. His voice suddenly perked up as he said, "That's right! Nyaa-I should grant you a wish for saving my life!"

'_A wish?'_ Ryoga thought in surprise. "Grant me a wish? But I don't have anything I… Wait, what kind of wish?" He asked. Ryoga didn't trust magic and he especially did not trust cats, those things were not good in his book.

"Nya, nya, nya, nya!" The cat laughed, "Nyaa-I am not nyuu-you're ordinary ghost cat. In fact, perhaps nyuu-you've heard of me? Nyaa-I am the famous Mao Mo Lin, legendary three-thousand nyaa-year old Chinese ghost cat who carries a bell to search for his bride. Make whatever wish nyuu-you want! Do nyuu-you have a girl nyuu-you like?" The voice, Mao Mo Lin, asked slyly.

"I did…" Ryoga answered slowly, "but I gave up on her."

"Didn't she return nyuu-your feelings?"

Ryoga shook his head. "I don't know."

"Nyuu-you don't know?" Mao Mo Lin asked in surprise. "Did nyuu-you tell her how nyuu-you feel?"

"No," Ryoga said quietly, bowing his head so that his thick, black bangs hid most of his face.

"Nyuu-you didn't? Nyuu-you're more shy than nyaa-I am!" Mao Mo Lin exclaimed. "Don't tell me nyuu-you've never had a girlfriend before?" The Ghost-cat said incredulously, and then he began to laugh.

Hot licks of embarrassment flickered over Ryoga's fear. Once Ryoga's ears caught the voice of the Ghost-cat calling him _pathetic_, however, the flame extinguished the fear completely and Ryoga lunged for the bell, instantly reminding Mao Mo Lin of the wild dog that had lunged at him not all that long ago.

"Shut up!" Ryoga snarled. He was about to say more while he was poised menacingly above the suddenly fragile-looking bell, but Mao Mo Lin was ready and started transferring his essence outside the bell. The feeling of _'Cat! Danger!'_ filled Ryoga with the familiar dreaded fear he had for cats and he hastily jumped as far away from the bell and the mist as he could, his back hitting the wall. "St… Stay away!" He cried.

"Nyaa-I'm sorry to scare nyuu-you like that," Mao Mo Lin said in an apologetic tone.

As Ryoga's heartbeat slowed to a more normal pace, he gingerly sat back down, crossing his arms and legs again. "I-I can handle m-my own p-problems," He stuttered, trying to keep his voice even and steady. "I saved your life because it's a martial artist's duty to protect those in need, you don't have to thank me for it." He continued in a more controlled tone. Magic and cats were bad enough on their own, Ryoga didn't want to find out what would happen if you mixed the two together. "Besides how can a ghost cat like you help me anyway?"

"Nyaa-I'm a guy too!" Mao Mo Lin piped up. "Nyaa-I can't just ig-nyore the fact that you saved me; nyaa-I have to repay the debt!"

Ryoga looked up, his eyes carefully trained upon the bell as it rose to float in the air at roughly head-level with him, _'Now what?'_

"Nyaa! Ready or not, here I come!" Mao Mo Lin shouted as his strange mist surrounded the bell.

Ryoga was glued to the floor, frozen in fear as the feeling of cat-related danger filled the teen once more. His eyes were riveted on the bell as the mist abruptly vanished, only to be replaced by an intense, bright orange light. It surrounded the bell for a brief moment before it started writhing through the air. Ryoga experienced a split-second of fear-filled uncertainty. Then the light reached him.

"AUGH! AHHHH! AUGH!"

Ryoga felt…_invaded_…for a brief moment. Everything suddenly turned dark; he couldn't hear, smell, touch, see… All of his senses went dead and he was aware of nothing as his conscious mind shut down from the deprivation. Soon the light died down and the large bell clanked onto the wooden floor of the cabin, a faint haze of white light was surrounding Ryoga's limp body but then it vanished.

Now in full control of Ryoga Hibiki's body, Mao Mo Lin gave an unpleasant, catty grin that showed off Ryoga's fangs nicely as his slitted eyes turned a shining bright yellow, reflecting the light from the lantern.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

The sun shone merrily upon the Tendo residence in Nerima. The rays of lights warmed the house which was in a rare, peaceful state for once.

"Akane, Ranma, a package arrived for you from Ryoga," Kasumi's sweet voice called out.

"Coming!" Akane replied, trotting off to grab the package from her older sister. Holding an off-white, foot-long box in both hands, Akane walked into the living room and sat at the low table opposite Ranma, who was sitting cross-legged with his left elbow on the table and his chin resting in the palm of his hand.

"A package, huh? It's been a while since we last heard from him," Ranma said, turning to watch his 'uncute' fiancée unwrap the package with badly concealed curiosity in his eyes.

Akane unwrapped the off-white paper to reveal a plain white box with a folded letter lying atop it. The youngest Tendo picked up the letter and unfurled it while saying, "Yeah, it has. Makes me wonder where he's been travelling this time." With Ranma still watching her, Akane took a small breath and read the letter aloud for Ranma's benefit.

"_Dear Akane and Ranma,_

_Just a ny-ote to let you know I'll be dropping by soon. And to Akane, I nyeed to speak with you about something important."_

Akane blinked and said, "Huh, I wonder what that could be?"

"So what did he send us, anyway?" Ranma asked, his voice prompting Akane to set the letter down on the table and lift the lid off the box, though he couldn't help but notice the strange way the letter sounded when Akane read it but he later shook his head.

"Hmm…good question," She replied.

Both teens leant over the open box to inspect its contents. Inside was something that neither thought Ryoga would ever touch considering his nature.

"What the heck?" Ranma exclaimed, partly confused, partly worried and partly suspicious.

"Dried fish and…cat food?" Akane said incredulously. She looked back up and caught Ranma's gaze, an unspoken question shooting between them. Without uttering another word, Akane plucked a small squeaky mouse - a typical cat toy - from one side of the box and held it up at eye level for Ranma to examine.

Ranma's gaze contained a slight amount of fear as his eyes lingered on the innocent-looking toy. He wore a worried, spooked expression that was closely mirrored by Akane.

* * *

Ryoga was walking again, although this time there was no trail for him to follow. Of course, Ryoga Hibiki didn't know he was walking. His body, however, continued to plod on, driven by the spectral entity that had recently hijacked it.

Mao Mo Lin was puzzled, though. He had not possessed someone for quite a while, so he expected to be a little rusty. _'This,'_ he thought, _'is just ridiculous!'_

No matter what the ghostly cat did, he could not seem to steer the boy's body in the direction he desired. Even worse, he had no clue where he was and could no more tell which direction he had come from than why night followed day. From within the human body, Mao Mo Lin's highly developed senses were dulled. This was one of the main reasons why he rarely did possessions of a human body, everyone of his feline senses would be dulled to that of humans. Although he had to admit that the boy's body did have its virtues, young, strong, and full of energy, it was just the lousy direction thing that was screwing him up. Unhappy with this slight handicap, Mao Mo Lin stretched the human's senses to the limit, trying to reach the level of a cat's senses. Making do with the slight increase that his strain had produced, the Ghost Cat tried to get a fix on anything that would help him determine where he was.

Nothing seemed familiar at all. Mao Mo Lin gave a loud cry of frustration, sending some birds flying out of their roosts in fright. In the air, the birds continued to watch the strange human that walked with feline grace as he meandered about.

Mao Mo Lin gritted his teeth, unconsciously baring Ryoga's fangs, and doggedly plodded on through the mountain range.

After seven long, highly frustrating days, Mao Mo Lin found himself in civilization at last. Now he simply had to find a girl named Akane Tendo. He walked through street after street, feeling like a lab rat in a maze, and being fiercely barked at by every dog that caught sight or a whiff of him. Every time he walked by a barking dog he had to restrain himself from hissing back at them but that itself was not an easy thing to do. During the week, Mao Mo Lin had acquired a large, staff-like stick and was using it like an impromptu crutch, clutching it like a lifeline.

He had mostly been watching his feet, but he looked up tiredly at the sound of many voices and footsteps. He was standing in front of Furinkan High School. The students were just starting to leave and Mao Mo Lin thought it would be the perfect opportunity to ask one of them about the girl he sought.

Two girls strode past the gate right in front of where he was, standing slightly hunched over and leaning most of his weight upon the stick. "This is the town where Akane Tendo lives ny-isn't it?" He asked them, quickly stepping forward a bit.

If the two girls picked up on his slightly catty accent, neither of them showed it. One of them made a comment before pointing towards the school, saying goodbye and striding away.

Mao Mo Lin's weary gaze followed the girl's finger and he almost hissed at the sight that met his eyes. There was the girl whose image he had plucked from his host's mind. Walking beside her and chatting away, however, was that despicable Ranma Saotome. Mao Mo Lin managed to school his features so that he didn't give himself away, but his grip around the stick noticeably tightened.

"Hey, Ryoga!" Akane said brightly when she noticed him.

"Hey man, how's it goin'?" Ranma asked. While looking at the Lost Boy, Ranma suddenly sensed something strange and stopped in his tracks as a cold shiver went down his spine.

"Ranma, what's wrong?" She asked, noticing that he had halted.

Ranma continued to stare at Ryoga as though he was a puzzle that needed figuring out. "Nothin' that I can…" he answered slowly before trailing off, his eyes still locked onto Ryoga. He barely heard Akane invite Ryoga back to the house or his acceptance of the invitation, though he came fully back to reality when Akane called to him.

Dark, ominous clouds now blanketed the sky above town, releasing a boom of thunder every now and then, though no rain fell. The odd flash of lightning lit up the darkness for a split second, unheeded by the trio.

Ranma and Akane walked side by side while Ryoga trailed a couple of steps behind. As Ryoga had his head bowed and his eyes focused on the ground at his feet, he was unaware of the sly glances his two friends would send his way every few seconds.

Ranma had kept his well trained eyes on the Lost-boy not just to make sure that he didn't wander off but because there was something not quite right about the wandering Martial Artist, both inside and out, that made the hair on his neck stand on end, he turned to Akane and whispered, "Don't you think he's acting kinda weird?"

Akane glanced at the Lost-boy but found nothing out of the ordinary other than he was being unusually quiet, "Well he seems the same to me."

"He's like a different person." Ranma said.

Akane shrugged, "So he's probably just tired from his trip." She argued before turning to Ryoga with one of her cheerful smiles, "So how was your…" She stopped when she realized that Ryoga was not walking besides her but was standing a couple feet away from them looking lost and confused, she smiled feeling slightly relieved that he hadn't got too far, "There you are. Hey slow-poke, hurry up."

"I guess he's the same." Ranma muttered, but was still feeling unconvinced about the Hibiki boy.

Unbeknownst to the two teens, a sly smirk was plastered on one side of Ryoga's lips, revealing the tip of one fang. Mao Mo Lin had overheard their whispers and decided to act quickly by stopping and looking down the other road, it was a risk but he had to take it, he didn't want his cover blown just yet. He also stopped because thunder had clapped noisily overhead which he hated. So far it looked like his plan worked, now if he could just do something about that nosy Ranma Saotome before he ruined everything.

* * *

It didn't take long for the trio to reach the Tendo residence, from there Akane was asked by Kasumi to help her in the kitchen which Akane happily obliged but not before telling Ryoga to stay put. Ranma had long since excused himself from sight, leaving Ryoga to wait in the living room with Mr. Tendo and Mr. Saotome, who was currently in his panda form. Mao Mo Lin was determined not to move from where he sat, in order for his plan to work he had to stay put.

He looked down at his 'human' hands that were resting on top of his lap, this was the longest that he'd ever possessed anybody. It felt very strange being inside a human body, humans didn't have the same sleek grace, balance, and agility that cats do, humans were slow, heavy, and clumsy. However Ryoga Hibiki's body was different from the others humans the Ghost Cat had possessed in the past. He didn't know why but for some reason the boy's body had a different energy to it, something familiar yet foreign at the same time. At least he was able to extend the body's senses to his value but he didn't know how much longer he could stay in this human body.

Just then Mao Mo Lin heard 'Gotcha' and for a split second thought that he had been exposed, but when he saw that nothing happened he looked over and spotted Soun playing a game of Go with… a giant panda? But before he could ponder on the subject his cat-like eyes spotted the puff-ball stub of a panda tail swaying back and forth.

Mao Mo Lin quickly looked away, 'Nyuu-you can do it. Pretend nyuu-you didn't see it.' The Ghost-cat thought while trying to fight the temptation, but he opened one eye and spotted the panda tail continue to sway back and forth, 'Nyaa-it's no use, Nyaa-I can't resist.' Then without warning he pounced on the unexpected Genma-panda.

Akane then came walking in with a tray of drinks, "Kasumi says that dinner's just about ready so…" Just then she looked over at Ryoga and gasped, "Wha…?"

Ryoga was on his hands and knees behind Genma-panda, batting at his panda tail with his hands. The two fathers and Akane just stared blankly at the feline-possessed Lost-boy as he continued his game, unbothered by their gawking eyes.

A while later the Tendo's, Saotome's and Ryoga all sat at the table for dinner, after saying their appreciation to Kasumi for preparing the delicious meal they began to eat, or at least they would have if they weren't all staring at a certain Lost-boy, who was scarfing down his rice as fast as he could. It was as though Ryoga hadn't eaten in days by the way he was wolfing down his food. About halfway through eating his bowl of rice Ryoga used his chopsticks to stab his fish fillet before popping the whole thing into his mouth and swallowing it in one satisfying gulp.

Kasumi smiled, "Would you like to eat mine?" She offered sweetly holding her own fish fillet to him.

Ryoga licked his lips, "I'd love to, but only if nyuu-you don't mind. Fish is my favorite." He said before taking the offered fish and wolfed it down then went back to his rice.

Akane turned to Ranma while keeping her eyes on Ryoga and whispered, "That's odd, was he always so fond of fish?"

"Not that I know of." Ranma whispered while keeping his well trained eyes on Ryoga, but truth be told he knew that Ryoga wasn't that big a fan of fish but he does eat it for the protein.

It was bad enough that Ryoga was acting weird but now his eating habits were making Ranma feel uneasy. It wasn't so much as to how Ryoga ate, heck his own table manners were no better, but Ryoga never asked for more fish with his rice, not even if he was desperately hungry. Plus Ranma just couldn't shake the creepy feeling he was getting from the Lost-boy. After dinner Ryoga announced that he was gonna take a short nap and just curled up on his pillow and fell asleep.

The rest of the family eyed him strangely for a while but then went on to their normal routine, all but Ranma who was watching his sleeping rival. Everything that Ryoga had done since he got back in town just didn't sit right with the young Saotome heir. At first he thought he was just being paranoid, but there was a nagging voice in the back of his mind that was screaming for him to stay on guard. But why? This was Ryoga, his adversary from Jr. High turned best friend. Why did he have to stay on guard? He didn't know, yet at the same time he knew that his instincts were right.

About an hour later the sun and already set and now the sky was dark navy. Everyone in the household was going about their usual evening routine, Akane and her sisters were watching a dramatic soap opera on TV, Soun and Genma, back in human form, were playing Go 'again', Ranma was reading a manga, and Ryoga… was still asleep on his pillow. Every now and then he would sneak a glance at the sleeping Hibiki as though trying to figure out the sudden change in Ryoga's behavior before returning to his comic.

The sisters continued watching their program, they were watching a middle-aged couple standing in front of a water fountain. Nabiki began muttering to the man on TV to propose to the woman he was with until she shouted, "Either do it or don't you moron!"

Upon hearing Nabiki's muttering to the television about 'proposing' Ryoga awoke from his slumber and then stealthily approached Akane from behind without her knowing it. He gently placed his hands on her shoulders and said, "What nya-I want is to marry you." At the same time as the male on television spoke it.

Everyone's attention was on the two teens, Akane was shell-shocked and Ryoga was surprisingly calm, "Akane," He spoke softly, "Please would you marry me?"

"Ry… Ryoga I…"

"Now wait just a minute here!" Genma spoke drawing everyone's attention, "Ryoga, surely you are well aware of Ranma's betrothal to Akane? Therefore I must object to your proposal towards Akane, for Ranma and Akane are to wed so that they may unite our family Dojos."

Soun stood up in applaud, "Well said Saotome, remarkable speech!"

Ryoga's lips curled into a catty grin, "And why would Akane choose that scouwwndrel Ranma, when she'd be better off with me? Nyaa-I would treat her myaa-uch better then he ny-ever would."

"Alright, that's it!" The Saotome heir hollered causing everyone's attention to turn to him now, but Ranma's narrowed blue eyes were focused on Ryoga, "Alright Ryoga what the hell is going on here! You've been acting weird ever since you came back and now this." He gestured to him and Akane, "Just what're you trying to pull here?"

Ryoga glared at the pigtailed Saotome, his lips forming into a snarl with his sharp fangs exposed, "Nyuu-you mind nyuu-your own business, or nyuu-you're gonna be sorry!" He warned firmly, then without warning he pounced towards Ranma with an angry yowl.

Ranma was taken aback by the sudden attack and ducked out of the way which caused Ryoga to rebound off the wall and land on all fours, "Ryoga, what the hell's gotten into you?"

"Shut up nyuu-you!" Ryoga bellowed and pounced again.

This time Ranma was ready for the attack. Just as Ryoga got closer Ranma reached up and grabbed the front of Ryoga's shirt and in one swift motion he leaned backwards bringing his legs and feet up to where they made contact with Ryoga's stomach. Then when Ranma's back made contact with the floor he then pushed Ryoga up and over himself with enough force to send the Lost-boy flying over Soun and Genma's heads. While in the air Ryoga righted himself, realigned his orientation and landed gracefully and perfectly on the large rock surrounding the Koi pond, on all fours. He looked up at Ranma with an angry glare and hissed.

Ranma had a horrified look on his face as he stared where Ryoga landed. Something wasn't right, it wasn't so much that Ryoga had managed to avoid hitting the ground but it was how Ryoga landed. The way he corrected himself in the air and they way he landed on the rock. It looked eerily familiar, it looked like the way… a cat would land if it had been thrown. Even the hiss sounded cat-like which made the Saotome take a step back. Now he knew that something's wrong and had a good idea as to who's behind it.

"Oh my, I hope Ryoga didn't hurt himself." Kasumi said in concern.

"Wow, now this is dramatic entertainment." Nabiki spoke, "Ryoga proposes to Akane out of nowhere, then just before she can answer Ranma steps in and objects, then the two start fighting. This is far better than any Soap opera or anything the Drama club at school can come up with."

"Nabiki!" Akane scolded.

"What?" Nabiki asked.

"Be that as it may, Ryoga should've known better than to propose to Akane when he knows that she's already betrothed to Ranma." Spoke Genma.

Soun agreed with his old friend, "Indeed he should've Saotome."

Ranma turned and glared at the middle Tendo and their fathers, "Would all of you just shut up! Doesn't anyone but me see what's going on here?" He shouted, leave it to Nabiki to make a big joke out of any situation and leave it to his own father and Mr. Tendo to not see the real problem at all.

"What're you talking about Ranma?" Akane asked.

"I'm talking about everything that's been going on ever since Ryoga got back, and more importantly that that's not Ryoga." He stated.

Everyone looked at the pig-tailed Saotome blankly, "What do you mean that's not Ryoga boy?" Genma asked, "Take a look for yourself, who else could it be?"

Ranma had to restrain himself from launching any verbal insult towards his father or from driving his fists into his head, he just couldn't believe how stupid his father can be at times like this, "You think that I don't know my own friend? Trust me, I know what I'm talking about." Then he directed his attention at Ryoga, "Alright Meow Me Lee… or whatever the hell your name is. I know that it's you in there."

Ryoga's eyes widened, 'Oh fish-paste.' Then he stood up straight, "Nyaa-I… don't know what nyuu-you're talking about."

"Drop the act already will ya!" Ranma snapped, "I know damn well that it's you! A mail-package of cat food for Akane, playing with my father's panda tail like a toy, asking for more fish and milk at dinner, not to mention the catty-accent, and lastly proposing to Akane! If that ain't enough proof that I know it's you," He then sprinted down the hallway and then a few seconds later he came back this time with Ryoga's rucksack, "then why don't we have a look in here." Without warning he opened the top flap of Ryoga's backpack and sure enough he found what he was looking for, the bell of Mao Mo Lin, "Well well, what do we have here?" He said, holding up the bell for all to see. Ryoga's body flinched involuntarily; he was busted.

"The bell of the Ghost-Cat!" Soun exclaimed, "Hmph, now it's all making sense."

"I knew that the boy was acting strange from the start. I was just waiting to expose the truth when I had proof that my suspicions were right." Genma boasted only to receive a hard-knuckled thwack on the head from Ranma.

"Aww shut up ya stupid Old Man!" Bellowed Ranma, "You didn't have a damn clue as to what was going on!"

"So that's why Ryoga's been acting so strange." Akane stated, failing to notice Ranma glancing at her in a 'Well no duh Akane' sorta way.

Mao Mo Lin/Ryoga glared angrily at the pigtailed Saotome for exploiting him, "Damn nyuu-you Ranma…." He hissed speaking with his own voice instead of Ryoga's, "Nyuu-you had to go and ruin everything." He clenched Ryoga's hands into tight fists. He then raised his right fist and opened his hand and when he did Ryoga's fingernails lengthened into sharp claws, "Nyaa-ow nyuu-you're gonna pay!"

Ranma barely had time to blink as Mao Mo Lin came charging at him really fast with an arm drawn back to strike, but managed to jump out of the way and into the yard just as Mao Mo Lin's claws came down. When the Ghost-Cat realized that he had missed he changed course and leapt after Ranma again, this time with a barrage of claw strikes and kicks. Ranma managed to avoid and block most of Mao Mo Lin's attacks but for some reason he was having a really hard time concentrating on the fight, more so then the last time he faced the Ghost-Cat in another person's body.

The first time he faced the Ghost-Cat was when Shampoo bought that stupid bell and a little bell along with it, believing it to hold powerful matrimony powers of some kind to whomever holds the two bells, well it turned out to be half right. However when Shampoo told the Ghost-Cat that she was already engaged to Ranma, the ghostly feline then challenged Ranma to a fight for Shampoo's hand in marriage. Which at some point the Ghost-Cat went so far as to possess Ranma's father to gain the upper hand, but it turned out to be a disadvantage because Ranma didn't seem to have a problem with beating up his father. So then why was he having such a hard time fighting the Ghost-Cat in Ryoga's body?

The Tendos and Genma watched the battle from the patio, the only ones who looked worried were Kasumi and Akane. Akane watched the fight and noticed that Ranma was not even fighting back, he was only blocking and dodging the attacks but he wasn't throwing any attacks back. Why? Was it cause Ranma didn't want to fight because he knows that its not really Ryoga that's fighting him but the Ghost-Cat instead, she shook her head, no that couldn't be it but then what was the reason?

She pondered on that very thought while the battle continued then she got an idea, 'Wait a minute, that's it.' She thought before she hurried into the kitchen.

"Akane, where are you going?" Kasumi called after her sister.

Ranma continued to duck, dodge, and block most of Mao Mo Lin's attack, he just barely managed to dodge another claw swipe attack, 'Damn, that furball's probably spent more time in Ryoga's body more than anyone else's that he knows how to make it work.' He thought while dodging another claw swipe attack, 'I gotta get him out of there, but how?'

He continued to avoid Mao Mo Lin's attacks when he heard someone yell, "Hey Mao Mo Lin!" Both Ranma and the Ghost-Cat turned and saw Akane standing on the back patio with a bucket in her hands, a bucket full of water, "Get out of Ryoga's body right now or you're taking an ice cold bath!" She yelled as she lifted the bucket.

Both Ranma's and Mao Mo Lin's eyes widened with fear, Mao Mo Lin's because, like all felines, he really didn't like water and Ranma's because he knew what would happen if that cold liquid were to touch Ryoga's body and in front of Akane no less.

"Akane… nyuu-you wouldn't…"

"Try me." Akane said before throwing the continents of the bucket at the wife-seeking feline.

Ranma made a mad dash towards the Ghost-Cat as soon as Akane threw the water towards Mao Mo Lin/Ryoga and yelled, "NOOO!" He just barely made it as the ice cold water made contact with his body and thus triggering the Jusenkyo change, "Ahhhh, that's cold!" He, now she, cried out.

At the same time Mao Mo Lin yowled in horror at the sight of the cold transparent liquid and decided to abandon ship, or in this case, body. A white hazy light surrounded Ryoga's body, his eyes became all white as the Ghost-cat left his body, once he was gone Ryoga collapsed onto his hands and knees on the ground. Luckily for him, Ranma shielded him from the water with his own body and not one drop hit the Lost-Boy.

Akane just stared blankly at the now female Saotome, all in all confused as to why he just did that, "Ranma… why did you do that?"

Ranma-chan shook head to shake off any access water from her red hair before looking up at her fiancé, "Akane… don't you know that… that water makes cats crazy when they get wet?"

Akane blinked, "I know that cats don't like water. That's why I got a bucket of water in the first place, to drive the Ghost-Cat out of Ryoga's body." She explained.

"You couldn't think of a better solution than a bucket of ice water?" Ranma-chan shot back, "Cats go berserk when they get wet. You almost made the whole thing worse by doing that."

Akane glared, "I was only trying to help you jerk! I didn't see you come up with a better plan."

"I was just about to do it before you screwed it up." Ranma-chan argued back, "Next time think before you act stupid."

Akane tightly clenched the bucket her hands, almost breaking it, "Why you…"

Just then a soft moan escaped from Ryoga's lips, "Mmm where am I?" He lifted his head and then he heard Ranma-chan and Akane arguing, "What's going on?" He muttered softly, causing Ranma-chan to turn to him, "Ra… Ranma, what's going on here? How did I get here? And… why're you all wet?"

Ranma-chan gave a small smile, "You don't remember anything do you Ryoga?" Ryoga shook his head, "What's the last thing you remember?"

Ryoga looked thoughtful for a moment before answering, "Well I remember being lost in the woods somewhere, then fighting off some wild dogs, then shacking up in an abandoned cabin for the night with a… floating talking bell." He said very slowly.

"You mean like that one?" Ranma-chan asked pointing towards the Tendo's patio where the oversized bell laid harmlessly next to Ryoga's backpack.

Ryoga's body started to tense up immediately when he saw the familiar looking bell, "Yep… that's the one."

Just then the bell staring rising off the ground and hovered in the air, then without warning it slowly made its way away from the house and away from the right of the two Martial Artists, until it stopped and placed itself in its proper spot, at the center neckline of the Ghost-Cat.

Mao Mo Lin stared down at the petrified Lost-Boy and red-haired Saotome with a sheepish grin, "Guess the cat's out of the bag, wouldn't nyuu-you say?"

An icy cold chill went down both Ranma-chan's and Ryoga's spine at the mere sight of the ghostly feline. They both screamed in horror and then wrapped their arms around each other, their faces turning blue with terror, "Ca… ca…ca…ca…"

Mao Mo Lin was not surprised by neither Ranma-chan's or Ryoga's behavior but up until this point he started to become annoyed, "Hey listen pal." He said referring to Ryoga, "Nyaa-I was only trying do nyuu-you a favor."

"By what!" Ryoga shouted, "Taking over my body and embarrassing me in front of everyone!"

Ranma-chan looked up at Ryoga in amazement, "You actually remember what he made you do while you were possessed?"

"Not exactly but me not remembering how I got here or what the hell happened in the past week or however long it's been, makes it obvious that I've been possessed this whole time." Ryoga said simply and surprisingly calmly.

"Point taken."

"Nyaa-I only did it to repay nyuu-you for saving me." The Ghost-Cat spoke stepping closer towards the feline-phobic teens.

Both Ranma-chan's and Ryoga's 'cat danger' senses were going through the roof as they clutched each other closer, never mind the fact that they're both males and guys don't 'hug' other guys but in this case it can be overlooked. Ranma was a girl for the moment so that helped make it less awkward. Fear was rising steadily inside both Marital Artists with each step the large cat took towards them.

"Stay back… don't come any closer!" They both cried trying not to sound frightened but were failing miserably.

The Tendo's and Genma watched the whole thing from the patio, it didn't seem like anyone of them was in a big hurry to lend a hand to the suffering teens. The Tendo girls watched with mixed emotions, Kasumi looked distressed for the two teens, their fear was also affecting her. Being a kind soul at heart Kasumi couldn't stand to see people in pain, she wanted to help but didn't have a clue as to how to help them. Nabiki had a look that was between amused and intrigued, she could tell that things were going to get interesting real quick. Things always got interesting when it involved Ranma and Ryoga, their fights always brought in more profits than any other fights Ranma had with his other rivals. Akane's expression was a cross between her older sisters, she wanted to step in and help but she could see that it looked like Ranma-chan and Ryoga were about ready to lose it, so she waited. Neither Soun nor Genma looked at all concerned about the young teens, infact they had small smiles curled on their lips, like they know what's coming next.

Mao Mo Lin continued to approach the quivering teens, but his main focus was on Ryoga for he still had a dept to repay, "Listen, nyaa-I still have a debt to repay. So what do nyuu-you say we finish what we started." Mao Mo Lin gave a sly catty grin, "Just think of how great it would if nyuu-you were to team up with me? Nyuu-you provide the body and nyaa-I provide the will-power. What do nyuu-you think of that, hmm?"

Ryoga didn't answer for a moment but then said, "W..w… when I actually d…d….do p… pr…propose… I'LL DO IT MYSELF!" He yelled with as much courage as he could summon.

"There s…see, he d…do….don't need y…you." Ranma-chan stuttered trying to sound brave, "S…so why d…do…don't you j…just go… away, you… over-grown… f…fur-ball."

If Mao Mo Lin's eyes could get any wider they would've, for he as well everyone else was surprised by Ryoga's outburst and Ranma-chan's demands. Then Mao Mo Lin's furry ears folded back, which caused the frightened teens to flinch, "Nyaa-I'm trying to be a nice guy here by repaying myaa-y debt to nyuu-you. Don't make this any harder than it already is by making me use force." He said lifting his large furry paws.

Ranma-chan and Ryoga continued to shake uncontrollably, their hearts were pounding hard against their chests, their teeth chattered like mad, their whimpers almost mingling together. Finally when the Ghost-Cat lifted up his paws neither Ranma-chan nor Ryoga could stand it anymore, they both let out a loud screams of terror. The volume of their screams forced the Ghost-Cat to cover his sensitive ears before they both collapsed to the ground.

The Ghost-Cat opened his eyes and gazed down at the passed out teens, he bent down and lightly tapped them both on the cheek with a paw as though he was expecting a reaction out of them, but he got nothing, "Well that was a little anticlimactic." He said looking a little disappointed but then shrugged. He then turned towards the Tendos and Genma on the patio, his yellow eye landing on Akane, he grinned, "Since those two are out of the way, nyaa-I guess nyaa-I'll just propose myaa- y-self." He said as he stood up and made his way towards the Tendo's when all of a sudden there was a dual sound of…

"ROWR!"

All eyes turned to where Ranma-chan and Ryoga were, both were back on their feet with their heads down, their long bangs shadowing their faces. Soon they lifted their heads and performed the Cat-fist pose, then they crouched down on all fours, facing the Chinese Ghost-Cat, meowing angrily. The Ghost-Cat saw this and immediately began backing away as this brought back memories from the last time he saw Ranma-chan perform this same pose and acted the same way, only now it looked like his problem just doubled.

"Oh no, not this again." Said the Ghost-Cat, Ranma-chan and Ryoga only hissed at the over-sized feline.

"Looks like the Ghost-Cat's gonna get another taste of the Cat-Fist." Soun said in a nonchalant tone.

Genma nodded, "Only now it's gonna be twice as painful as before."

"Hmm and you'd think that he'd learn from the last time, but I guess it just goes to show that even spirits are slow learner as well." Nabiki says amusingly while winding her pocket camera.

Suddenly without warning Ranma-chan and Ryoga both pounced at the Ghost-Cat. The only things that could be seen were two red and yellow blurs bouncing wildly off the ground around the giant feline, the only thing that could be seen were claw and scratch marks on the Ghost-Cat. Mao Mo Lin tried to fend off the crazy feline-minded teens but every time he'd try to swipe at one of the bouncing blurs, he'd miss and get hit by another flurry of scratches. He tried to hit Ranma-chan with a another swipe of his paws only to have Ranma-chan leap over his extended arm and deliver a swift double kick in the face. The force of the blow forced the Ghost-Cat to make contact with the stone wall hard, Ranma-chan back-flipped off Mao Mo Lin's furry face and landed gracefully on all fours on the ground, when she looked up she let out an angry yowl.

Mao Mo Lin shook his head before getting back on his feet, he stared down at Ranma-chan angrily, "That's it, no more mister nice guy." He lifted his paw up then stopped, he noticed that something wasn't right, "Hey, where'd the other one go?"

"Rrroowwwrrr."

The Ghost-Cat's ears perked up and he quickly turned around, and he almost wished he hadn't. There on top of the stone wall surrounding the Tendo home was Ryoga, crouching low on all fours like a mountain cat ready to pounce on its unlucky prey. Ryoga stared down at the Ghost-Cat, a silent growl rumbled in his throat that sounded really close to a real mountain cat.

"Oh fish paste." Whimpered Mao Mo Lin.

Then without warning Ryoga launched himself at the Ghost-Cat and began a barrage of clawing attacks on the ghostly feline, pretty soon Ranma-chan joined in the battle too. It took another full minute of scratching, biting, and clawing before Mao Mo Lin was able to push away the psychotic Martial Artists and retreat into the safety of his bell.

"Nyaa-I'm outta here!" Mao Mo Lin exclaimed from inside the bell, "But nyaa-I'll be back!" He said before the bell began floating away into the nightly sky until there was no trace of him whatsoever.

Ranma-chan and Ryoga continued to gaze into the nightly sky where the Ghost-Cat had vanished, both hissing tensely. Then they heard someone clapping from behind, they both turned and spotted Akane getting down on her knees, "Here kitty, kitty, kitty." She called calmly, Ranma-chan's eyes flashed in recognition as she approached Akane then leapt onto her lap, "That's a good kitty." She said as her placed her hand on top of Ranma-chan's head, making the redhead purr in delight.

Meanwhile Ryoga just sat on his haunches and watched, feeling a little distressed now that his playmate left him.

This caught Kasumi's attention as she gazed at the young man, "Oh poor Ryoga." She whispered.

"Well looks like everything's back to normal, eh Saotome?"

Genma nodded, "Hmm, the Ghost-Cat's defeated and gone, and Ranma's being taken care of by his fiancé as we speak." He said, "All's well that ends well as they say."

"Indeed."

"Yeah but what about Ryoga?" Akane spoke pointing to the Hibiki boy, who was using the tree next to the Koi pond as a scratching post, "He's still in the Cat-Fist."

Before anyone could answer Kasumi stepped forward and kneeled down on the patio, "Ryoga, here kitty, kitty, kitty." Ryoga looked up at Kasumi and gave a questioned meow, she tried again, "C'mon, here kitty, kitty." She said warmly.

"Kasumi what're you…" Soun exclaimed but Kasumi held up a hand to him.

"Father please." She said sternly, then she turned back to Ryoga, "Here kitty, kitty."

Ryoga tilted his head to one side as he sat and stared at Kasumi as though trying to decide what to make of her, but there was something about her that made him feel… safe. Kasumi gently coaxed him to come to her again, finally he slowly made his way towards the eldest Tendo daughter.

"That's it, c'mon."

Ryoga continued to make his way towards Kasumi, it was when he came close to Akane that Ranma-chan opened her eyes and started hissing at the Lost-Boy. Ryoga responded by hissing back at the pigtailed Saotome.

Akane quickly got a hold on Ranma-chan, "Ranma no, bad kitty."

"Ryoga." Kasumi called again, this time holding out her hand to the feline minded boy, "Here kitty."

Ryoga turned back to Kasumi and looked at her outstretched hand, he leaned forward and sniffed her hand. Kasumi smiled at Ryoga's actions, he was acting like a real cat. She then lifted her hand towards the top of his head but he flinched as soon as she moved.

"It's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you." She soothed.

Nabiki scoffed softly, "You couldn't hurt him anyway sis. The guy's built like a mountain."

"Nabiki." Scolded Kasumi

Ryoga looked between the two sisters before turning back to Kasumi. One more time Kasumi lifted her hand towards him and then touched the top of his head, when Ryoga didn't flinch away she took it as a good sign and began gently stroking the top of his head. Ryoga closed his eyes and smiled as she continued to gently caress his head. He then leapt up and onto her lap, the same as Ranma-chan had done to Akane. Kasumi was taken by surprise at first but as soon as Ryoga was comfortable on her lap, she could only smile.

"What a good kitty." She said as she began petting the Lost-Boy, making him purr in delight.

The remaining Tendos and Genma gawked at what just happened. Akane stared in shock at her eldest sister, she could not believe that Kasumi had been so bold as to do something like that. Thank goodness it worked but what if it didn't and Ryoga had attacked Kasumi instead? Of course who would attack Kasumi, but still it was still a huge risk to take. She just hoped that her sister would never do something like that again.


End file.
